 As of right now I am putting myself on paint probation. Yep. It's serious.
For thirty days in January I painted in my studio. Unfortunately that led to very little time to put things away (like paint), a few trips to the art store (to buy paint) and pretty much total chaos (of paint) in my studio. This morning I decided it might make sense to organize my studio. First I organized my paintings and canvases. (You might remember my previous post about being a canvas hoarder.) Then I tackled the many tubes and jars of acrylic paint. I organized them by color (for about the 10th time) in my favorite aqua colored rolling metal trays from ikea. As you can see, the result is completely ridiculous. I have way too many tubes and jars of paint. I have no idea why I have so many tubes of yellow paint (like 20ish) and aqua paint (like 20ish). I honestly had no idea I had this much acrylic paint. Especially in the two colors previously mentioned. The end result? I am on paint probation. I cannot and will not buy any more paint. (At least until I have less than five containers of blue, aqua, green, yellow and red paint.) Maybe it's easier if I paint all of my February abstracts in the color palette of aqua and yellow. That might work. So I am curious. Do you have an organized studio? Or a paint problem? 
17 Comments
2/2/2016 08:20:34 am
I have to get this place back into some kind of shape after the 30 -30. it seems a great number of us let things got to rack and ruin. Now I'm cracking the whip, gotta do the the basics etc
Leslie Saeta
2/2/2016 10:45:50 pm
I promise you will not see me at the Art store!
Karin
2/2/2016 09:00:02 am
I too have a lot of paint. And a lot of white and yellow for some reason. And also nearly every shade of red--cool and warm.
Leslie Saeta
2/2/2016 10:46:39 pm
You are very organized Karin! Very impressive. 2/3/2016 09:23:41 am
I cleaned my desk off after the challenge ended. Like taking a deep breath to start something new. I had paint and paper everywhere. (Didn't do any canvases this time, but I have a small stack of them ready to go.)
Leslie Saeta
2/3/2016 09:27:39 am
Ahhh ... a painting challenge where you try to use up all of your old paint! Great idea. Haha. 2/3/2016 09:33:54 am
I so understand this. I have two studios which is one problem. But no matter the lists I can't remember most colors that I own. 2/3/2016 10:17:40 am
This is too funny. I'm the same way. I like your trays. Happy Painting. Hugs. Sally 2/3/2016 10:29:26 am
I have a great storage solution - an old steelcase cabinet/toolbox, 33 drawers, on casters. Perfect height for my palette to rest on, perfect storage for all my paints and brushes, sorted by color and size. But I so covet those IKEA carts (I have 2 vintage enameled tea carts that I store paper and flat panels on, and I'm sadly out of room or else I'd have those too!) 2/3/2016 10:43:03 am
The only difference for us watercolor painters is that our tubes are MUCH smaller. I store my colors in different baggies and I have a separate baggie with just the current colors on my palette for easy refills. But I'd sure like to have some aqua carts...now WHAT could I put in THOSE!? 2/3/2016 01:15:36 pm
After reading the comments I begin to wonder if I am an artist at all - lol. My studio space is pretty neat, my paints are organized, my canvases are organized and so are my brushes. I just had my husband put up a new shelf in my studio and it is still empty. Guess I could go to the art supply store - if we had one!
Sally in the 818
2/3/2016 01:24:47 pm
Wow that's pretty good! At least it's organized. 2/3/2016 01:33:16 pm
Not as much paint as you Leslie, but I have acrylics, oils, and pastels. I also do sculpture in clay and stone, so there is that! I put my oils in tool boxes with little drawers...it works perfectly and my acrylics in a rolling cart with lots of drawers. The pastels are in boxes in another unit. I also cleaned and reorganized after 30 in 30. I actually am a bit stingy about paint so I need to get more! 2/3/2016 04:17:46 pm
Holy Moly Leslie! I guess you do have some paint! Makes my neat, color coordinated containers look timid by comparison.😜 This sort of thing happens to a lot! For some reason I think I need a lot of a particular paint color and as soon as I get about 10 tubes of it (cuz I'm SURE I'm going to need that much), I forget about that plan and move on to something else. I have drawers full of pint tubes I may never use! I know other artist who do the same. I think I will organize an artist's materials swap-like a ski swap! oh do I ever have a paint problem! From September of last year through the end of December, it's been a whirl wind of activity- a wedding, lots of travel, a flurry of sale BIG and small, which all dissolved into one mess of a studio. And after reading Marie Kondo's book about the 'tidying' process and what 'sparks joy' ....well holy cow- I'm way overdue for a studio cleanout! Right, I'm hoping to make that happen after I finish this current commission I'm working on! ;-)
I'm "new" at the having a studio totally dedicated to my art. I paint on concrete, bookmarks, gift tags, smooth rocks, ceramic tiles, glasses, ornaments, note cards, greeting cards, and yes a few canvases. Each time I have a commission or a show, it's utter chaos until after the show, then it takes me a few days to put it all away only to pull everything out and rearrange yet again. It works great b/c I find items I'd forgotten and stashed away for "future projects". My paints are acrylic, a wonderful set of Prisma colored pencils, sharpies, pencils, my trusty eraser and pencil sharpener and sketch books. Paints are organized by color and yes I have bought duplicates, especially the cheepie 2 oz bottles that seem to breed. Painting on concrete destroys brushes - separate container makes a difference, especially when painting a pet's eye and needing that fine brush. Bottom line is rearranging, reorganizing, and taking a fresh approach to my studio has worked for me. Found entire set of colored pencils I knew I had bought and "lost". Love your blog! Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
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Leslie
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